The biggest benefit employees seek is greater meaning and purpose in
their daily work. In fact, many would gladly trade some of their
compensation for more meaningful work, according to a new ServiceNow/Edelman
Intelligence survey. (Check out the related infographic).

“Employees today want to know that they are realizing their full
potential at work,” says Pat Wadors, Chief Talent Officer at
ServiceNow. “Using technology to reduce the mundane tasks they face
every day frees up people to focus on the more creative, important and
fulfilling aspects of their jobs.”

Workers who feel like they’re not making valuable contributions are
likely already scouting out their next gig. That’s a big problem for
employers trying to retain talent in a job hunter’s market. “If you
don’t give people meaningful work, they’ll leave,” says Cara Silletto,
president of Crescendo Strategies, a workforce consulting firm. This
is particularly true for new hires, who tend to cut their losses and
move on if they feel unfulfilled.

The root of the problem isn’t an epidemic of dysfunctional cultures
or clueless bosses. It’s more about the increasing burdens of
administrative busywork coupled with poorly executed onboarding
programs. “If you force new employees to do mostly grunt work, you’ll
rotate through those people faster than you did before,” says Silletto.

Companies that find ways to reduce or automate grunt work while
instilling purpose in new hires are more likely to win their hearts
and minds.

The price of purpose

In the survey of 2,000 U.S. office workers, 58% said they wished
their work was more meaningful. It wasn’t just often‑stereotyped
Millennials expressing that view. While 65% of 18‑ to‑ 24‑year‑olds
wished their work was more meaningful, 70% all respondents who said
the same were over 35 years old.

Meaningful work is important enough that slightly more than half
(52%) of the respondents said they would sacrifice a median pay raise
of $1,000 to get more of it. On the flip side, 62% said they would
only switch to a less meaningful job if they got a median pay hike of $5,000.

A recent study covered in Harvard
Business Review supports the same argument. More than nine out
of 10 people surveyed by BetterUp said they would be willing to trade
a percentage of their lifetime earnings for more meaning on the job.

The grind of busywork appears to be the focus of their angst. Survey
respondents said they devote 40% of a typical workday to mundane
tasks—double the amount they say is necessary. Compounding their
misery, 66% believe they are powerless to change the equation.

Drudgery ultimately hurts employee morale and motivation. Asked how
menial tasks make them feel about their work, nearly half of
respondents chose responses such as “like I’m wasting my time” and
“bored;” 44% said tasks make them feel unmotivated, and 34% said they
make them feel like they’re not living up to their potential.

The fact that those negative feelings are somewhat higher for newer
employees poses another problem for employers, because those newer
(and often younger) workers have no intention of suffering through
years of dues‑paying as their more senior colleagues may have done in
years past.

One‑third of employees today say that they know after just one week
on the job if they are likely to stay long‑term, according to a 2015 survey from Ultimate Software; 63% make the
call within the first month.

“Businesses need to re‑evaluate how grunt work is done—who’s doing
it and whether it can be automated,” Silletto says. “Maybe it should
be rotated among employees so no one feels it’s too much of a burden.”

Failing at onboarding

Successful onboarding has been shown to make a difference in
employees’ sense of purpose, but the survey suggests many
organizations are falling down on the job when it comes to prepping
people for their roles.

Asked about their experiences when starting a new job, 33% said they
received no essential training; 28% said they did not even receive
clearly defined job responsibilities and goals. Another 26% percent
reported not having a clear onboarding program, and 19% said they
didn’t feel fully onboarded even after three months on the job.

The survey suggests companies have a win‑win opportunity if they can
address their onboarding challenges. Workers clearly want more
training and guidance in the early days of a new job. Fifty‑eight
percent said walkthroughs of key processes were most valuable, while
47% wanted time to review onboarding materials.

At an electrical connector manufacturer where Silletto worked as a
trainer, employee orientation always included demonstrations of how
seemingly insignificant products could have a major impact on
customers. For example, the connectors were built into lifesaving pacemakers.

“That was part of the company’s culture—telling employees that they
were building useful things that mattered to many people,” Silletto
says. “That brought more meaning to their work. They knew they weren't
there just to hit goals.”

Other factors can enhance workers’ sense of purpose. In its 2018 Employee Retention Report, software
employee engagement company TinyPulse found that workplace culture can
matter more than pay when it comes to staying with a job. Its survey
found that employees who rate their culture poorly are 24% more likely
to leave their jobs.

“You can’t just put your values on a poster,” Silletto says. “We
like to say, ‘What’s on the wall doesn't walk down the hall.’ You have
to guide people in your history and values and their roles and
responsibilities. That starts with onboarding.”

The takeaway for employers: Starting from day one, find ways to
infuse job responsibilities with meaning and purpose. If you wait
until employees ask for those things, it’s probably too late.